LOGINAfter Audrey's true colors came to light, Richard felt like his whole life had turned into a joke. For the first time, something close to regret stirred in him. He shouldn't have made the choice he did, back then. And yet some stubborn corner of his heart still clung to resentment — if Shayla hadn't been so determined to leave, maybe none of this would have happened.They hadn't seen each other in so many years that whatever feeling remained between them should have faded to almost nothing by now. And yet, for reasons he couldn't quite explain, Richard found himself missing Shayla. Memory after memory of their happier years together came flooding back — back before he'd lost his memory, before Silas and Scott were even born. Their marriage had been a genuinely good one back then.Shayla used to give him gifts she'd made with her own hands. She'd once painted a portrait of the three of them together as a family. She was clever with her hands and skilled at every kind of craft — she'
Rick composed himself quickly. He could just as easily claim that the Waltons had lured him there too. He hadn't actually taken part in any of it — Harley really had tricked him into showing up. Even if something had gone badly wrong, none of it could be pinned on him.Afterward, he lost contact with Harley entirely. Through a few channels, he picked up word that Lesley appeared to be dead, Jamie was injured, and even Thomas seemed to have suffered something serious enough to be rushed back to Leistre. Meanwhile Sharon, the one person Rick most wanted to see in trouble, had come out without a scratch. The commotion that night had been loud enough that none of it could stay hidden for long.The moment Richard heard about it, he went straight to Rick. "Rick, do you know exactly what happened between the Waltons?"Ever since Victoria and her mother's true colors had been exposed, Richard's hair had gone gray almost overnight. He'd dyed it back to black since, but there was no hiding
Now that Sharon and Thomas were back, it was time to deal with Rick and Harley. Jamie had been hurt earlier, though not fatally, and after a month in the hospital, he'd been discharged. Once out, he went straight after every hidden asset his father had entrusted to Harley, rooting them out and settling the score one by one. Jamie had paid dearly this time — he'd very nearly died at Harley's hands — and there was no way he'd let the man off easy after that.With Thomas's arrangements in place, the plan targeting Rick officially got underway.Rick's mood, lately, had been foul. His alliance with Lesley had gotten him nowhere with Sharon and Thomas, and it had cost him Victoria entirely. Then Harley had come to him, claiming Lesley had only ever been using him and never had any real intention of working together. Thinking back over everything he and Lesley had done together, Rick had to admit that aside from sending men to try to assassinate Jamie, nothing had actually worked in his
Thomas was still keeping an eye on the Walton family's affairs, too — after getting burned once by the Walton brothers, he wasn't about to let his guard down again.Sharon agreed with his reasoning. Telling Wendy that Lesley might still be alive, only to have him turn out to actually be dead, would be a devastating blow."If — and I mean if — Lesley really is alive but announced his own death," Sharon asked, "is that because he's worried Jamie and Harley would hunt him down?""Jamie didn't kill him when he had the chance," Thomas said, "and he won't go after him now either. As for Harley, now that he's been exposed, Jamie isn't going to let him off the hook, which means Harley has bigger problems than turning around to deal with Lesley. And Lesley's actual reach turned out to be wider than I'd expected. Harley can only work from the shadows — he'd have no real chance going after Lesley head-on."Something complicated flickered across Sharon's face. "So Lesley gave up the fight for
Once the plane landed in Marcentine, Sharon and Thomas headed straight to the hospital to see Wendy. Sharon felt nothing but guilt where she was concerned — Wendy had looked after her all through her own illness, but when Wendy needed her in return, Sharon hadn't been there. She'd been off in Leistre taking care of Thomas instead.Pushing the hospital room door open, Sharon found Wendy pale-faced, struggling to eat. In the three months since she'd last seen her, Wendy had lost an alarming amount of weight, her face drained of all color."Wendy." Sharon's eyes stung. "I'm back."Because of the baby, Wendy's condition had actually improved a little since Sharon had left — she wanted to keep the pregnancy, and was forcing herself to eat for that reason alone. At the sight of Sharon, her eyes lit up."Sharon, you're back... Is Thomas all right?"Thomas stepped out from behind Sharon. "Wendy, I'm fine."Seeing him standing there whole and unharmed, Wendy managed her first real smile
Sharon continued, "But she's done so much for me over the years. When work got hectic and I pushed through without a break, Wendy stayed up with me until all hours. And because I hadn't secured my place as head of the family yet, she was always worried someone might try to get close to her just to use her, and she wouldn't be able to tell the difference — so she never made friends, never dated anyone. "But I know her nature. She loves noise, loves people, loves having someone to talk to. And yet at my side, she had to watch every word, tread carefully around everything. All she had was strangers online to talk to."Sharon had always felt she owed Wendy something. They'd been close friends since their school days. After Sharon married and had a child, most of her energy had gone into her family, and her contact with Wendy had faded, until months would pass without a word between them. Even when they did talk online, Sharon would often be mid-conversation when Theo started crying, a
Sharon's eyes brightened for a moment, then she frowned."But you just said Q is ranked first. Can he really beat Q?" she asked.Thomas replied, "My guy doesn't like the spotlight. He avoids the rankings entirely.""Is he reliable?" Sharon pressed."100%," he said.She studied him. "Are you clo
Walton Group… that meant Jamie.Sharon's gaze sharpened. "Why would the Walton Group suddenly attack the Macaron Group?"She didn't believe Jamie would go after Julliard simply because he had helped her. For all his cruelty and cunning, Jamie was never reckless. He might despise her, but he wouldn
Julliard froze for a second, but recovered quickly. "I don't know what you're talking about."Thomas slowly sat up."You were the one who leaked the information to Jamie, weren't you?"Julliard's expression didn't change, but his silence spoke for him. "Thomas," he said, forcing a light tone, "
Gerard's eyes flashed. "The one who hurt him? Are you implying that Sharon caused Miles's disappearance—that she's responsible for his vanished whereabouts?"Silas shot back, "Miles went missing after he met Sharon. Whose guilt looks greater, if you ask me?"Silas knew full well that without proof







